CLGF Board Member Mayor Darrell Bradley, Mayor of Belize City, addressed a special session on building trust at local level during the 17th International Anti-Corruption Conference (IACC) in Panama City on 3 December. Mayor Bradley emphasised that trust should be at the heart of local democracy and engagement with citizens, citing that recent world events show that many people do not trust the establishment and there is often a lack of confidence in the public sector.
Citing CLGF’s Aberdeen principles on good practice for local democracy, Mayor Bradley said:
As local government we must start locally and regain that trust through openness, transparency and accountability as well as greater citizen engagement.”
He said that councils should be willing to embrace new technology for innovative ways for better engagement with citizens and to be able to analyse and process date to become more responsive and make decisions based on accurate information.
“Building trust with local communities is vital,” he said. “We want the public on board to understand what we do, why we do it and how we do it, and to consult them before we make decisions to make sure what we do is relevant.”
The session was organised by he UN-Habitat Urban GLASS initiative, of which CLGF is a founding member.
The IACC agreed the Panama declaration: time for justice, equity, security and trust. 
Read Panama declaration